Centrifugal separator of the continuous process type



April 26, 1966 PRINS 3,248,045

CENTRIFUGAL SEPARATOR OF THE CONTINUOUS PROCESS TYPE Filed Jan. 24, 19649 Sheets-Sheet 1 2 4 a INVENTOR.

KLAAS PRINS BYWI. ,V.

BY MAHONEY MILLER& RAMBO ATTYs.

April 26, 1966 K. PRINS 3,248,045

OENTRIFUGAL SEPARA'IOR OF THE CONTINUOUS PROCESS TYPE Filed Jun. 24,1964 9 Shun-Shut B In K FW FE m Q L 5 h m y m f a a 4 N N 2 N 53 Nmmvron. KLAAS PRINS 2 8y LL MAHONEY MILLER& RAMBO ATTYS K. PRINS April26, 1966 CENTRIFUGAL SEPARATOR OF THE CONTINUOUS PROCESS TYPE Filed Jan.24, 1964 9 Sheets-Sheet 5 FIG.

INVENTOR.

KLAAS PRINS BY MAHONEY MILLER8RAMBO ATTYS BY ;r M

April 26, 1966 K. PRINS 3,248,045

CENTRIFUGAL SEPARATOR OF THE CONTINUOUS PROCESS TYPE Filed Jan. 24, 19649Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR. KLAAS PRINS BY MAHgQIEflMILLER 8 RAMBOATTORNEYS.

April 26, 1966 K. PRINS 3,248,045

CENTRIFUGAL SEPARATOR OF THE CONTINUOUS PROCESS TYPE Filed Jan. 24, 19649 Sheets-Sheet 6 I 2/0 E INVENTOR.

KLAAS PR/NS :H BY I l l E MAHONEY,MILLER&RAMBO g q 8% y M ATTORNEYS.

April 26, 1966 K. PRINS 3,248,045

CENTRIFUGAL SEPARATOR OF THE CONTINUOUS PROCESS TYPE Filed Jan. 24, 19649 Sheets-Sheet 7 ATTORNEYS.

A ril 26, 1966 K. PRlNS 3,248,045

CENTRIFUGAL SEPARATOR OF THE CONTINUOUS PROCESS TYPE Filed Jan. 24, 19649 Sheets-Sheet 8 INVENTOR. KLAAS PR/NS BY MAHONEY,MI LER & R E0 m4. 1 M

ATTORNEYS.

April 26, 1966 K. PRINS 3,248,045

CENTRIFUGAL SEPARATOR OF THE CONTINUOUS PROCESS TYPE Filed Jan. 24, 19649 Sheets-Sheet 9 INVENTOR. KL AAS PRINS BY MAHgQ/EY, MILLER 8 RAMBOATTORNEYS.

ging the filter member.

herent disadvantage of the usual centrifuges of this type,

3,248,045 CENTRIFUGAL SEPARATOR 'OF THE CONTINUOUS PROCESS TYPE KiaasPrins, 194 E. D St, Wellstou, Ohio Filed Jan. 24, 1964, Ser. No. 341,48119 Claims. (Cl. 233 2) trifuge in extracting the water from a fluidcontaining solid matter and, for example, a centrifuge application forthis purpose is in the ore processing industries where the ore is oftensubjected to a washing process and purification of the resultant wastewater is required before it enters a disposal system. In the usualapparatus of this type, the fluid to be processed is directed into arotary shell or drum and centrifugally thrown against the peripherythereof which is fabricated as a filter member permitting the water tobe extracted from the fluid and retaining the solid matter within therotary drum. The extracted water is collected by an enclosure extendingcircumferentially around the rotary drum where it may be withdrawn anddisposed of in any convenient manner. It is, of course, necessary toalso provide means for removing the solid matter from within the rotarydrum to permit its continued use. In this respect, an obviousdisadvantage of previously devised centrifuges is readily apparent asthe retained solid matter or sludge will tend to remain packed againstthe peripheral filter member and clog the openings or passages throughwhich the water is extracted, thereby reducing the effectiveness of thecentrifuge. Prolonged operation under this condition thereforenecessitates a means for removal of the solid matter from the filtermember and the centrifuge. The usual methods of solid matter removalgenerally require stopping of the centrifugal separating process andreplacement of the filter member or the cleaning thereof by, forexample, backflushing. Scraper members revolving within the rotary drumadjacent the filter member have also been utilized in an attempt tocontinuously remove the solid matter during the operation ofcontinuous-process apparatus, however, they are not effective inremoving material clog- As a consequence of this intheir effectivenessin extracting the water is substantially lowered as the solid matteraccumulates on the filter member thereby reducing the efliciency of theapparatus and increasing the cost of operation.

It is the primary object of this invention to provide a centrifugalseparator having a rotary drum with a substantially liquid impervious,solids collecting, peripheral wall member to extract the solid matterfrom a fluid contained within the rotary drum.

.It is also an object of this invention to provide a centrifugalseparator having a rotary drum with the peripheral wall thereofcomprising a plurality of annularly disposed, adjacently contactingrollers that are continuously rotated about their axes as the drum isrevolved, thereby continuously extracting the solid matter from thefluid centrifugally thrown against the inner peripheral wall andretaining the separated liquid within the drum wherein it is permittedto flow freely downward by gravitational force.

Another object of this invention is toprovide a can trifugal separatorhaving a rotary drum with the periphby the circumferentially enclosingcollector is also con- 3,248,645 Patented Apr. 26, 1966 eral wallthereof comprising a plurality of rollers in contacting engagementcontinuously rotated about their axes as the drum is revolved acting asa substantially liquid impervious, solids collecting member inextracting solid matter from a fluid that is inherently self-cleaning asthe extracted solid matter carried to the outer peripheral wall of thedrum by the rollers is dislodged therefrom by centrifugal force anddeposited in a collector enclosing the rotary drum. 7

A further object of this invention is to provide a centrifugal separatorhaving a rotary drum wherein the solid matter extracted from the fluidand deposited'in a collector enclosing the rotary drum is removedtherefrom by a scraper for subsequent disposal in any convenient manner.

A centrifuge constructed in accordance with this invention is providedwith a rotary drum having a substantially liquid impervious, solidscollecting peripheral wall mounted for rotation about a vertical axiswithin a circumferentially enclosing collector. The peripheral wall ofthe rotary drum comprises a plurality of vertically disposed rollerscircumferentially arranged therein. Each roller is in contactingengagement with the adjacent rollers forming a continuous peripheralwall impervious to the flow of a fluid with entrained solid matterintroduced within the drum. Revolving the drum by a suitable drivingmeans causes the fluid to be centrifugally thrown against the rollerswhere the solid matter will be separated and accumulated on the inwardlyfacing portions. A driving means is also provided for rotating therollers about their axes as they revolve about the vertical drum axis.The rollers are constructed with resilient surfaces permitting the solidmatter to deform the roller surfaces sutficiently to be drawn between apair of cooperatively rotating rollers and extracted from within therotary drum, and subsequently deposited by centrifugal force in theenclosing collector. Liquid retained within the drum will flowdownwardly by gravitational force to the bottom of the drum whereopenings are provided for its escape into a suitable collecting chamber.Solid matter accumulated tinuously removed by a revolving scraper anddeposited in a suitable receptacle.

The various objects and advantages of this invention will be readilyapparent from the following detailed description thereof and theaccompanying illustrative drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a centrifugal separator embodying thepresent invention;

FIG. 2 is a vertical section taken along line 2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a horizontal section taken along line 3-3 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a horizontal section taken along line 44 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4a is an enlarged detail of a section of FIG. 4 showing theextracting action of the rollers;

FIG. 5 is a horizontal section taken along line 55 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged sectional detail of a roller and its mountingstructure;

FIG. 7 is a plan view of a modified form of centrifugal separatorembodying the present invention;

FIG'. 8 is an enlarged vertical transverse sectional view takensubstantially along line 8-8 of FIGURE 7 and FIGURE 10;

FIG. 9 is a transverse sectional view taken along line 9--9 of FIGURE10;

FIG'. 10 is a longitudinal sectional view taken along line 1010 ofFIGURE 9;

FIG. 11 is a sectional view taken along line 1111,of FIGURE 9; and

a closed lower end supported in an appropriately elevated position onfour vertically extending standards 11 secured to the lower end thereof.-An inverted frusto-conical shaped liquid accumulator 12 extendingdownwardly from the lower end of the housing terminates in a cylindricaldischarge pipe 13 at the lower end thereof for connection to anappropriate disposal system. A cylindrical sludge outlet pipe 14 alsoextends downwardly from the lower end of the housing 10 for connectionto an associated disposal system. Such disposal systems are notpertinent to this invention and, therefore, are not illustrated. The

open upper end of the housing 10 is provided with a cover 15 removablysecured to the outwardly extending annular flanged rim 16 of the housingby the bolts 17. A cylindrical fluid inlet pipe 18 enters the, housing10 through a hollow centriguge drum shaft 19 journaled in the upperbearing 20 which is secured to the cover 15 by the bolts 21. The fluidinlet pipe 18 is, of course, connected to the apparatus of a processproducing a fluid containing solid matter that must be separated beforedisposal. The source of the fluid is not illustrated as it may be anytype of process such as, for example, coal washing. Rotative powerrequired by the centrifuge may may-be supplied by any suitable powermeans. In this instance, an electric motor 22 is conveniently adaptablefor this purpose and is mounted on the housing 10 by means of anappropriate motor base 23.

The primary internal structure of the centrifuge, as is bestshown byFIG. 2, consists of a rotary drum 2'4, mounted on the verticallydisposed drum shaft 19 for rotation in a horizontal plane within thehousing 10. In addition to the upper bearing 20, a lower bearing 25, inwhich the shaft19 is also journalled, is secured to the horizontalbottom plate 26 of the housing by the bolts 27. Antifriction bearingsare utilized which are adapted to carry an axially directed load as wellas the usual radial load. For convenience of manufacture, the drum shaft19 is constructed in two sections, a lower secti0n28 and an uppersection 29. The lower section 28 is an elongated cylindrical shaftextending upwardly through the bearing and terminating at anintermediate point within the drum 24. Two retaining collars, 30 and 31,are fixed to the lower section 28 at either side of the bearing 25 formaintaining the section in the proper vertical position. That portion ofthe section 28 extending upwardly from the retaining collar 31 is of areduced diameter forming an annular shoulder 28a parallel to the upperhorizontal surface of the collar 31. The upper section 29 is anelongated cylindrical tube extending downwardly through the bearing 20having an internal diameter of appropriate sizeto coaxial-1y receive thereduced diameter portion of the lower section 28 inserted therein.Section 29 extends through the drum 24 with the lower end thereof incontacting engagement with the annular shoulder 280. Although the drumshaft is fabricated in two sections for convenience of manufacture, thesections are rigidly secured together by, for example, a press fit toprovide a unitary shaft construction. Two retaining collars, 3-2 and33,'are also fixed to the upper end of the section 29 at either side ofthe bearing 20 to further aid in maintaining the vertical position ofthe drum shaft 19. As previously indicated, the non-rotating inlet pipe18 enters the centrifuge through the upper section 29 of the drum shaftwith which it is co'axially aligned but has sufficient clearancerelative to the inner wall of the section to avoid interfering with therotation thereof. The pipe 18 tenninates a distance above the .upperenclosed end of the lower section 28 but within the rotary drum 24. Aplurality of fluid discharge orifices 34 are formed in the cylindricalwall of upper section 29 between the opposed ends of the pipe 18 and thelower section 28 permitting communication of the entering fluid with thedrum 24. j

Two circular rotor plates 35 and 36 form the lower. 1' and upper ends,respectively, of the rotary drum 24. The 1 rotor plate 35 is secured bythe bolts 37 to a central hub 38 fixed on the lower marginalend of thedrum shaft section 29. by means of the keys 39 (FIG. 5). The rotor'plate 36 of a larger diameter than the rotor plate 1 is similarly fixedon the shaft section 29 by a central hub 40 keyed thereto and secured tothe plate 36 by the bolts 41 but is spaced upwardlyon the shaft section29 from the rotor plate 35 to accommodate the rollers42i verticallydisposed therebetween.. An annular ring43,

herein termed a weir plate, is secured to the periphery of the rotorplate 35 and extendsoutwardly to'the same radius as the rotor plate36.-and also extends inwardly over the rotor plate with the innercircumferential edge 44 1 thereof tapered downwardly and outwardly (FIG.6). In-

termediate' the inner and outer circumferential edges of the weir plate43, an integrally formed, depending annular flange 45 spaces the weirplate upwardly from the. rotor plate 35.. A plurality of cap screws 46extending through the rotor plate 35 engage cooperatively threaded holesappropriately spaced in the annular flange 45. A l

plurality of liquid discharge orifices 47 are spaced in the periphery ofthe rotor plate 35 within the annular area of the rotor platecoextensive with the inwardly extending portion of the weir plate 43.The orifices 47 are 1 circular openings in the rotor plate 35 with shortcylin1 drical tubes 48 secured therein extending a given distance.

downwardly from the rotor plate 35. To facilitate as: sembly of therotary drum 24, a plurality of circular hand holes 49 in the rotor plate35- are spaced in an.

plate 43 and the upper rotor plate 36. The tubes 50 spaced around theperiphery of the drum are interposed between the rotor plate 36 and weirplate 43 with the opposite ends in contacting engagement with therespective plates.

The tie rods 51 extend through the tubes 50 and the,

rotor plate 36 and the weir plate 43 and by means of the associatednuts52 threaded on the outer ends thereof rigidly clamp the rotor and weirplates to the spacer tubes 50.

The solids collecting peripheral wall of the rotary drum- 24 consists ofa plurality of vertically disposed rollers 42 rotatably mounted in theperiphery of the drum. Each roller 42 (FIG. 6) is fixed on a tubularshaft 53 journalled at either end in bearings 54 having nylon bushings55 secured to the rotor plate 36' and the Weir plate 43.

by the cap screws 56. Each bearing 54 is an elongated cylinder extendingthrough coaxial openings in the rotor plate and weir plate with anannular mounting flange 57 integrally formed intermediate the endsthereof. The

bearings 54 are positioned on their respective plates with turn fixed tothe shaft 53. The annular flanges 61 disposed at the ends of the hubs 60are positioned adjacent I the inwardly facing ends of the bearings 54forming an nular cavities with the cylindrical surfaces of the bearingsand the parallel surfaces of the flanges 57. The surfaces of thecylindrical tubes 59 are covered with a resilient material, such asrubber, that is securely bonded thereto forming a cylindrical rollercasing 62. The roller casing 62 extends axially outward from the ends ofthe tube 59 to the weir plate 43 and the rotor plate 36 and is incontacting engagement therewith. The inner surface of the axiallyextending end portions of the casing 62 are formed to cooperativelyengage the surfaces of the associated portions of the bearings 54 andthe mounting flanges 57. For this purpose, the marginal ends of theinner wall surface of the casing 62 associated with the mounting flanges57 is tapered similarly to the peripheral edges 58 thereof providing acontacting surface. Inwardly of the tapered surface, an annular flange62a integrally formed with the inner Wall surface of the casing 62extends radially inwardly to fill the cavity defined by the hub flange61, the outer cylindrical surface of the bearing 54 and the flange 57providing a contacting surface therewith. The casing 62, although incontacting engagement with the surfaces of the rotor plate 36, weirplate 43, flanges 57 and bearings 54, is not secured thereto permittingrotation of the rollers While forming .a fluid impervious seal. Thetubular shafts 53 extend upwardly from the bearings 54 in the rotorplate 36 sufficiently far enough to accommodate the pinion gears 63fixed thereto, as is shown in FIGS. 2 and 4. The lower ends of shafts 53are held by the retaining collars 64. As adjacently disposed rollers arecontra-rotating, driving one roller through the pinion gear 63 iseffective in driving the adjacent rollers in frictional contacttherewith requiring that pinion gears be fixed to every other shaft 53only. The retaining collars 64 are secured to the remaining shafts 53.At the lower end of each shaft 53 extending downwardly from the bearings54 in the weir plate 43, a re taining collar 64 is fixed completing thesecuring of the roller assembly to the rotary drum 24. Lubrication ofthe roller shafts 53 is facilitated by the insertion of a lubricatingfitting 65 in the upper end of the tubular shaft permittingcommunication of lubricant with the interior of the shaft. A plug 66inserted in the lower end of the shafts completes the sealing of theshaft. Radially drilled holes 67 in the shafts and opening to thesurfaces thereof in the region of the bearings 54 permits lubricant tocommunicate therewith.

Within the interior of the drum 24 is a horizontally disposed, circularpartition plate 68 secured by the bolts 69 to a cent-rail hub 70 keyedto the drum shaft section 29. The plate 68 is positioned on the shaftsection 29 immediately below the lowermost orifices 34 located therein.The plate 68 extends outwardly substantially to the rollers 42 but hassuflicient clearance therebetween to permit the fluid throwncentn'fugally outward over the upper surface of the plate to flowdownwardly along the inwardly facing roller surfaces.

A pulley 771 of the multiple V-belt type is keyed to the shaft section29 and spaced a distance upwardly from the hub 40. An associated drivepulley 72 keyed to the upwardly extending shaft 22a of the verticallydisposed motor 22 is aligned with the pulley 71. Flexible coupling ofthe pulleys 71 and 72 is completed by a set of V-belts 73 encirclingthem and passing through an opening a appropriately located in thevertical wall of the housing 10. The respective sizes of the pulleys'71and 72 are of course determined by the required speed of the rotary drum24 relative to the motor speed.' Rotatably mounted on the shaft section29 between the hub 40 and the pulley 71 is an elongated cylindricalsleeve 74. A cylindrical nylon bushing 75 coaxially inserted within thesleeve 74 and a nylon thrust washer 76 encircling the shaft section 29between the hub '40 and the sleeve 74 provide the necessary antifrictionbearing surfaces. A pulley 77 of the multiple V-belt type and of thesame pitch diameter as the pulley 71 is keyed to the upper end of thesleeve 74 adjacent the pulley 71. A gear 78 fixed to the lower endof.the sleeve 74 by the keys 78a (FIG. 3) is aligned with the piniongears 63 for the proper intermeshing of their respective teeth. Thediameter of the gear 78 is substantially larger than that of the piniongears 63 with the respective diameters determined by the required rota?tional speed of the rollers 42. As previously indicated, the piniongears 63 are secured only to every other roller shaft 53 with theremaining rollers 42 rotatedin the opposite direction through thefrictional contact between adjacent rollers. A second drive pulley 79associated with pulley 77 of the roller drive train is also keyed to theshaft 22a of the motor but has a slightly smaller diameter relative tothe other drive pulley 72. A second set of V-belts 80 extending throughthe opening 10a in the housing 10 and encircling the pulleys 79 and 77completes the flexible coupling of the motor 22 to the rollers 42through the roller drive train.

Within the housing 10 and concentrically mounted on the bottom plate 26relative to the rotary drum 24 is a V frusto-conical' shaped liquidcollector ring 81. The conical wall thereof tapers inwardly and upwardlyterminating adjacent the lower horizontal surface of the rotor plate 35with the lower marginal edge rigidly secured to the bottom plate 26 by,as for example, welding. The diameter of the open top of the ring 81 isslightly larger than that of the circle described by the revolvingliquid discharge tubes 48 extending downwardly from the rotor plate 35and terminating within the ring 81 below the upper marginal edgethereof. An annular ring of circular openings 82 provided in the bottomplate 26 intermediate the bearing 25 and the collector ring 81 permitsthe water collected therein to flow freely downward into the externallyvmounted, inverted frusto-conical liquid accumulator 12 and thenceoutward through the discharge pipe 13 into a disposal system. Thediameter of the upper peripheral edge of the accumulator 12 disposedadjacent the bottom plate 26 is snfliciently large to enclose theopening 82. An outwardly extending annular flange 83 integrally formedaround the upper periphery of the accumulator '12 and in contactingengagement with the bottom plate 26 secures the accumulator to the baseplate by a plurality of bolts 84 extending therethrough.

Solid matter deposited on the inner wall of the cylindrical housing 10is dislodged by a revolving scraper 85 which also aids in the removal ofthe solid matter from the housing. The scraper 85 comprises a pluralityof vertically disposed blades 86 spaced radially in an annular ringbetween the rotary drum 24 and the housing 10 with annular members 87,88 and 89 interconnecting the upper and lower ends 90 and 91 thereof.The blades 86 are plates of a generally rectangular shape with the outeredges 92 thereof disposed adjacent the inner wall of the housing 10 andextend upwardly from the bottom plate 26 terminating above the upperrotor plate 36. Interconnecting the upper ends 90 is the annular member87 comprising a horizontally disposed web 87a rigidly secured to theblades 86 and a vertical flange 87b integrally formed therewithextending upwardly from the outer pe riphery of the web 87a. The widthof the upper end 90 is, of course, limited by the annular space betweenthe rotary drum 24 and the housing 10 with the inner vertical I member88 and interconnecting the blades 86 comprising a vertically disposedweb 88a rigidly secured to the blade 86 and two integrally formed,horizontally disposed flanges 88b and 880 extending inwardly from themarginal edges of the web 88a. The lower flange 88b spaced upwardly fromthe horizontal edge 94 is also secured to the portion of the blade 86extending inwardly to the collector ring 81 terminating in acorrespondingly tapered edge. The inwardly facing edge of the lower end91 tapers upwardly from the junction of the web 88a and the upper flange88c intersecting the vertical edge 93 of the upper end 90 at a pointslightly below the weir plate 43. A plurality of frusto-conicalhorizontally disposed 7 rollers 95 spaced around the outer periphery ofthe collector ring 81 extend outwardly therefrom into the channel member88 and support the revolving scraper 85. The rollers 95 tapereddownwardly and outwardly for contacting engagement with thecooperatively tapered inner surface of the upper flange 880 arejournalled on shafts 96 secured to the outer surface of the ring 81. Theannular channel member 89 extending around the periphery of the scraper85 opening outwardly is rigidly secured in appropriately sized notcheslocated in the vertically disposed edges 92 interconnecting the lowerends 91 of the blades 86. A belt 97 extending substantially around theperiphcry of the scraper 85 in the channel member 89 and outwardlythrough a pair of openings 1% in the housing flexibly couples thescraper 85-to the pulley 98 fixed on the downwardly extending shaft 22bof the motor by the key 99. The area of contact of the belt 97 with thechannel member 89 and the pulley 98 is increased by two idler pulleys100 journalled in brackets 101 externally mounted on the housing 10 todisplace the belt 97 inwardly of the normal tangential position.

A circular opening 102 is formed in the bottom plate 26 with a diametersubstantially equal to the distance between the housing 10 and thecollector ring 81. The solid matter discharge pipe 14 encircles theopening 102 and is secured to the bottom plate 26.

Ina centrifugal separator constructed in accordance with this invention,a quantity of fluid with entrained solid matter contained within arotary drum is revolved, thereby creating centrifugal forces causing thesolid matter to separate from the fluid leaving a clean liquid which, asan example, may be water. The fluid is thrown against the periphery ofthe rotary drum where the solid matter accumulates displacing the liquidinwardly permitting the separated solid matter and liquid to beseparately with- .drawn from the centrifuge for the subsequent disposalthereof. The fluid to undergo the separating process enters the rotarydrum 24 through the inlet pipe 18 c0- axially inserted in the hollowupper end of the drum shaft 19 and the orifices 34 in the upper shaftsection 29 communicating with the interior of the drum as is indicatedby the flow directional arrows in FIG. 2. The drum 24 is revolved at ahigh speed, preferably about 1000 r.p.m., by the motor 22 and the drivepulley 72 con-' nected by the belts 73 to the pulley 71 causing thefluid to be centrifugally thrown outwardly over the partition plate 68toward the inwardly facing surfaces of the rollers 42. The partitionplate 68 assures that fluid entering the upper portion of the drumthrough the orifices 34 will be thrown outwardly to the rollers 42before it has an opportunity to drop to the bottom rotor plate 35.Liquid is prevented from flowing outward through the peripheral wall ofthe drum as the resilient surfaces of adjacently disposed, contactingrollers 42 form a liquid impervious continuous peripheral wall as isbest shown by FIG. 4. The liquid impervious sealing of the rollers 42 tothe rotors of the drum is completed by the axially extended ends of thecasing 62 contacting the bearings 54, the flanges 57, the taperedperipheral surfaces 58 of the flanges, the rotor plate 36 and the weirplate 43. Centrifugal force causes the solid matter to accumulate on thesurfaces of the rollers 42 displacing the liquid inwardly where it mayflow downwardly over the inwardly facing roller surfaces through thespace between the partition plate and the rollers Where furtherseparation occurs. The separation process is diagrammaticallyillustrated by FIG. 4a where the dotted portions A represent the solidmatter. The relatively clean liquid flows downwardly to the inwardlyextending portion of the weir plate 43 where it will accumulate and flowover the tapered edge 44 and enter the space between the weir plate 43and the lower rotor plate (FIGS. 2 and 6). Communication of thedownwardly flowing fluid directly with the liquid discharge orifices isprevented by the inwardly extending portion of the weir plate 43permitting further sepsmaller diameter of the pulley79.

8 1 aration of the solid matter as the liquid must flow inwardly beforeflowing over the edge 44 of the Weir plate. Solid matter also reachingthe weir plate 43.would be prevented from entering the orifice 47 by theinwardly projecting portion of the weir plate as the centrifugal forcewill prevent the inward movement thereof. The

liquid accumulatedbetween the rotor plate 35 and the weir plate 43 flowsdownwardly through the liquid discharge orifices 47 and associated tubes48 into the collector ring 81. The inwardly tapered wall of thecollector ring 81 prevents the centrifugally thrown:liquid from beingforced upwardly and will direct it ,down- Wardly to the plate 26 whereit may freely flow through the openings 82 therein to the accumulator 12and thence through the discharge pipe 13 into a disposal system.

Removal of the separated solid matter that has accumulated on theinwardly facing surfaces of the rollers 44.. from within the drum isaccomplished by rotating the,

The motor 22 through the pulley 79 and the rollers. belts drives thepulley 77 at a slower speed due to the The gear 78 intermeshed with thepinion gears 63 is therefore rotated at a slower speed than the rotarydrum 24 although in the same direction. Revolving the drum 24 causes thegears 63 to be turned by the slower rotating gear 78. It has been foundpreferable to rotate the rollers 42 at about 10 rpm. and, therefore, therespective sizes of the gears and pulleys in the roller drive train aredetermined accordingly. Only every other roller 42 is driven through thegear train.

and the intermediately positioned rollers are driven by frictionalcontact with the adjacent driven rollers. As two adjacent contactingrollers 42a and 42b, as shown by FIG. 4a, rotate in an outwarddirection, the next pair of rollers 42b and 42c rotate in an inwarddirection. Solid matter accumulated on the inwardly facing surfaces ofthe rollers is carried toward the converging surfaces of a pair ofoutwardly turning rollers, 42a and 42b, and

drawn therebetween to the outer periphery of the drum 24 where theextracted solid matter is thrown outwardly by centrifugal force anddeposited on the inner wall of the housing 10. Solid matter accumulatedbetween the diverging surfaces of a pair of inwardly turning rollers,

42b and 420, is embedded in the resilient casing 62 by centrifugal forcethereby providing adequate frictional contact to permit the solid mattercollected therebetween to be carried inwardly by the rollers against theoutward-:

ly directed centrifugal forces to the converging surfaces of anoutwardly turning pair of rollers, 42a and 42b. The resilient casings 62of the rollers 42 facilitate the extrac-.

clarity. As the roller surfaces carrying the embedded I solid matter arerotated to auoutwardly facing position,

the resilient casings return to their normally annularshape therebyreleasing the solid matter, further aided by centrifugal force. Thepairs of inwardly turning rollers 42b and 420 of course always remain ina contacting relationship preventing the outflow of liquid or solidmatter.

The moist solid matter deposited on the inner surface of the housing 10tends to remain in position.

volving scraper. 85 is therefore utilized to dislodge the solid matterallowing it to drop to the bottom plate 26 t where it is pushed aroundthe periphery of the housing:

10 by the lower ends 91 of the blades 86 to the opening 102 and isremoved through the discharge pipe 14. the illustrated embodiment, thescraper 85 is revolved by the motor 22 through the belt 97 flexiblycoupling' the drive pulley 98 thereof to the annular channelrnem- 7 her89, however, a separate driving motor may be advan t tageously utilized.

The re-.

- illustrated best in FIGURES 7-10.

In FIGURES 7-12, inclusive, there is illustrated a modified form ofcentrifuge embodying the principles of this invention. In thisembodiment, the centrifuge machine is shown as being disposed so thatits axis is horizontal but it is to be understood that it could functionequally as well if the axis were disposed vertically. This form of thecentrifuge also employs as the outer peripheral annular solid-collectingwall a plurality of rollers disposed in yieldable sealing contactrelationship.

The general arrangement of this modified centrifuge is It comprises ahorizontally disposed centrifuge cylinder or drum200 (see FIGS. 9 and10). This drum 200 is keyed on a shaft 201 which is supported in ahorizontal position in suitable bearings 202 on the upper ends of theopposed upright standards or supports 203. The shaft 201 projects fromeach end of the drum 200 and isrotatably mounted in the bearings 202,the opposite ends of the shaft projecting from these hearings. Thestandards 203 are carried on a base structure 204 and it will be notedfrom FIGURE 9 that located along the side edges of this base structureare the upstanding supports 205 which carry a drum-like casing orhousing 206. This casing 206 is concentric with the drum 200, it beingunderstood that the drum will rotate within the casing which isstationary since it is fixed to the supports 205 in a suitable manner.The casing 206 (FIGURE 10) is of greater axial extent, as well asdiameter, as compared to the drum 200 and it will be noted that theshaft 201 projects through the central openings 207 in the ends of thecasing, the bearings 202 and associated standards 203 being located justoutside the ends of the drum-like casing. Each end of the drum-likecasing 206 is partially closed by the inwardly v extending, peripheralflange 208 within which the openings 207 are formed.

As will be explained more in detail later, the solids removed by thecentrifuge action of the drum 200' are collected in the casing 206 andare removed therefrom through a radially extending discharge spout oroutlet 210 which extends the full length of-the casing at the lower sidethereof. These solids or sludge may be carried to a suitable locationaway from the centrifuge by any suitable type of conveying means. i

The shaft 201 may be driven by any suitable driving arrangement but inthe example shown in FIGURE 7, there is illustrated a multiple V -beltpulley 211 keyed on the one end thereof which is driven by means of themultiple V-belt 212 from a second multiple pulley 213 that is driven bya suitable electric motor 214 carried by the base 204. The drum 200 iskeyed on the shaft 201 so that it will be driven with the shaft.

The detailed structure. of the drum 200 is illustrated best in FIGURES9-12. The outer solid-collecting annular or peripheral wall of the drum200 is formed by a roller arrangement, as previously indicated, whichembodies a plurality of rollers disposed in yieldable sealing.

contact relationship. The solid-collecting wall formed by this rollerarrangement is designated generally by the reference character 215 andwill be described in detail hereinafter. The substantially closed endsof the drum 200 are formed by the rotor plates or end plates 216 and 217(FIGURE 10) which are disposed transversely of the shaft 201 and atright angles thereto. Each plate 216 or 217 is carried by a hub 218which is keyed to the shaft201 for rotating therewith. The plate 216 isprovided with a plurality of inlet openings 219 disposed in an annularrow of angularly spaced openings just radially inwardly of the solidcollecting roller wall 215. Through these inlets 219, the mixture ofsolid and liquid to be separated is adapted to enter into the drum 200.Surrounding this annular row of inlet openings 219 is a directing bafile220 which is attached to the outer surface of the ard 203 and terminatesin an elbow 222a which will direct the mixture into the annularfrusto-conical baffle 220. The directing elbow 222a will be stationary,during operation of the machine, but the baffle 220 will be rotatingwith the drum 200 at this time. Consequently, the mixture to beseparated will be directed by centrifugal force outwardly along theoutwardly flared bafile and through the inlet openings 219 into the drum200.

The plate 217 at the opposite end of the drum 200 (FIGURES 9 and 10) isprovided with a skimmer lip which is on a ring 225 that is secured tothe inner surface of the plate 217, just radially inwardly of the solidcollecting roller Wall 215. Located just inwardly of the skimmer 225 isan annular row of angularly spaced liquid outlet openings 226. Connectedto these outlets 226 are conducting pipes 227 which lead radiallyoutwardly so that centrifugal force of the rotating drum 200 will aid indirecting cleaned liquid outwardly from the drum. These pipes 227 haveoutlet nozzles 228 which extend outwardly parallel to the drum axisthrough ring 229 that rotates with the drum. This ring 229 overlaps anannular slot 230 provided between the flanges 231 and 232 which areattached to the adjacent inwardly directed flange 208 and the outerperipheral wall respectively of the casing or housing 206. With thisarrangement, there is provided a stationary annular collecting trough orchamber 235 in which the cleaned liquid is collected as it is dischargedfrom the separating drum 200. Leading substantially tangentially fromthis annular collecting chamber 235 (FIGURE 8) is a liquid outlet spout236 that extends from one side of the base 204 and which may beconnected to a conduit to conduct the cleaned liquid to a suitablelocation.

' The solid matter that passes through the solid-collecting peripheralro-ller -wall 215 deposits on the annular wall of the surrounding casing206. It is dislodged from this wall by means of a revolving scraper unit240, shown best in FIGURES 8, 9 and 10, which surrounds the centrifugedrum 200 and is disposed radially outwardly of the wall 215 and indirect association with the annular :wall of the casing 206. The scraper240 comprises a plurality of angularly spaced scraper blades 24 1 whichextend longitudiend wall 216 and which is of frusto-conical form havingnally along the wall of the casing 206. The opposed ends of these bladesare fixed to the mounting rings 2 42. These rings are of angular crosssection and are supported for revolving movement by means of the rollers243 which are mounted in angularly spaced relationship on the inwardlyextending annular end flanges 208 of the casing 205. Thus, there isprovided an annular revolving scraper and conveyor which will scrape thesolid material from the annular inner surface of the casing 206 and willcarry it around the annular casing wall until it is discharged throughthe radial bottom Outlet 210.

The scraper unit is revolved by means of a pair of endless chains 244which cooperate with the respective rings 242. Each of these chainsextends around the outwardly directed horizontal flange of the ring andpasses around a driving sprocket 245 which is shown in FIGURES 7 and 8.The pair of sprockets .245 are keyed on a longitudinal shaft 246 Whichis mounted in bearings in longitudinal spaced extensions or guards 247projecting from the annular casing 206 (FIGURES 7 and 8). It will beapparent that each chain 244 will enter and leave the associatedextension 247 through a suitable slot in the annular wall of the casing206. The shaft 246 is driven by a sprocket and chain drive 248 (FIGURE7) from an electric motor 249 mounted on the casing 206 adjacent thehousing extensions 247. Associated with each chain 244, within eachhousing extension 247, is an idler sprocket 250 and an adjustablymounted take-up sprocket 251 but the details of these latter structuresare not illustrated as they are not mportant to this invention. Anyother suitable driving extending radial flanges of the rings 24-2.. Itwill also be noted that these latter flanges overlap radially inwardlyextending rings or flanges 252 which are mounted on the inner surface ofthe outer annular wall of the casing 206. Thus, with this arrangement,the end plates 216 and 217, the rings 242 and the rings 252 will berelatively revoluble but they will provide a substantially tight annularjoint which, in conjunction with centrifugal force, will prevent thesolids from leaving the annular space or chamber 255 except at thedischarge outlet 210.

As previously indicated, the solid-collecting peripheral wall 215 is inits basic arrangement similar to that previously described. However, inits specific roller structure, it is somewhat different from the rollerstructure previously described. This particular roller structure isillustrated best in FIGURES 942, inclusive. It is made up of a pluralityof large positively-driven rollers 256 which are disposed in annularlyspaced relationship and which are fixed radially in the drum 200 and aplurality of radially floating rollers 257 which are disposed forcooperation with the spaces 256a between pairs of adjacent rollers 256.All of these rollers are disposed for rotation about horizontal axesbetween the end plates 216 and 2.17, the axes being in parallelrelationship with each other and with the axis of the shaft 201. Thepositively-driven rollers 256 are all driven in the same direction and,upon rotation of the drum 200, will frictionally engage the rollers 257therebetween to drive them in an opposite direction.

Each of the rollers 256, as shown in FIGURES 11 and 12, is of astructure somewhat similar to the rollers previously described andcomprises a cylindrical metal tube 258 which is covered by a tubularcovering 259 of deformable resilient material, such as rubber, that issecurely bonded thereto. The end of the roller adjacent each end plate216 or 217 is renewable and therefore is made as a separate ringconsisting of a metal sleeve extension 258a and the resilient coverextension 259a, the members 258a and 259:: being formed as separaterings. The metal sleeve 258 is carried by an inner bearing disc 260 andan axially spaced outer bearing member 261 on a stub shaft 262 coaxialwith the roller. The bearing 260 is fixed to the sleeve 258 and isrotatable on the shaft 262. The bearing 261 is also fixed to the sleeve258 but is keyed to the shaft 262. The sleeve extension 258a is slidableaxially off and on the bearing 261 and the rubber covering 259a carriedthereby carries a thrust bearing ring or collar 263 at its outer edgewhich is of ny lon'or other suitable material to decrease frictionbetween the rubber ring 259a and an associated tubular bearing housing264. It will be apparent that the ring structure at the end of theroller which comprises rings (258a and 259a and ring 263 can bereplaced, if necessary, because of wear. The bearing sleeve 264 is fixedin the associated end plate 216 or 2 17, the plate 217 being shown inFJGURES 11 and 12, and supports rotatably the outer end of the shaft262. This sleeve housing 264 may be the housing for a suitableantifriction bearing which may include the needles or rollers 265, theends of the housing being closed by suitable sealing rings and plates266. The shaft 262 extends outwardly through the housing 264 and has adriven gear 267 keyed on its outer projecting end.

Each of the rollers 257 (FIGURE 11) is of smaller diameter than therollers 256 but is of similar construction in that it includes an innerrigid metal sleeve or core 270 and an outer deformable covering 271. Anouter renewable end structure 272 of ring form is provided on the rolleradjacent the end plate and this is provided with a thrust collar or ring273 which is attached to the end of the roller. Instead of the rollerbeing carried by a shaft, it is carried by an axle pin 274 provided ateach end thereof. Each pin is mounted in a sleeve or hub 275 on whichthe sleeve 270 is fixed and the renewable ring 272 is carried by a metalcollar 272a which is slidable on and off the outer end of the hub 275.The pins 274 at 1a. f the opposed ends of the rollers 257 extendoutwardly through radial slots 279 in the respective rotor end plates216 and 217 and are provided with heads 276. The radially extendingslots 279 are located in angular positions. midway between the axes ofthe roller shafts 262. As previously indicated, the rollers 257 are notpositively driven but since they are located with their axes inwardly ofand between the axes of the pairs of adjacent cooperating rollers 256,as shown in FIGURE 9, and since the axles 274 are free to float radiallyoutwardly in the slots 279, upon rotation of the drum 200, the rollers257 will move outwardly into the radial spaces 256a between the rollers256. Each of these spaces 256a will be of a width at its narrowestextent, which is less than the diameter of the associated roller 257.Therefore, centrifugal force will, upon rotation of the drum 200, moveeach roller 257 radially outwardly into the space 256a between the coopcrating pair of rollers 256, the deformable sleeves 271 I and 2590f therespective rollers deforming to permit a tight squeezing action betweenthese three cooperating rollers.

As a safety factor to prevent any possibility of the rollers 257 workingradially outwardly through the spaces 256, stop rollers 280 areprovidedin cooperation with these spaces.

end plates 216 and 217. Each rod 281 has its axis (FIG- URE 9) spacedradially outwardly of the axis of the coroperating roller 257 beinglocated parallel to the axes of the adjacent pair of rollers 256 andoutwardly of such axes.

adjacent end plate. The openings 282 are in radial align: ment with theslots 279. The extreme outer end of the rod receives a threaded cap 283and the nuts 284 are provided on the threaded end within the end plate.Thus,

with this arrangement the plates 216 and 217 may be spaced axiallyaccurately and retained in such spaced relationship so as to provideadequate sealing at the ends of the respective rollers 256 and 257without undue friction and wear. One of the end plates, preferably theplate 216, is splined to the shaft 201 for limited axial movementrelative to the other plate to permit this adjustment.

The stop roller 280 (FIGURE 11) comprises an outer cylindrical sleeve285 of metal which is fixed on a bearing member 286 at each end and isrotatably mounted on the rod 281. Thus, the sleeve 285 can rotate on thepin 281. The rollers 285 are shorter than the other rollers with limitedspaces at their ends to permit the limited relative adjustment of theend plates 216 and 217. If the associated roller 257 moves radiallyoutwardly through ithe space 256a into engagement with the roller 280,its radial movement will be stopped by contact therewith but the roller257 will still be free to rotate resulting insimultaneous rotation ofthe stop roller 280.

As previously indicated, the spur gears or pinions 267 are driven torotate the respective rollers 256. These gears are provided at one endonly of the rollers 256,

being shown at the end adjacent the end plate217. At the other end, themounting shaft is similar to the shaft 262 but does not extend from thebearing housing-264 as indicated to the left of FIGURE 10. All of thesegears 267 are driven simultaneously in the same direction about theiraxes as they revolve with the drum 200. Consequently, while the rollers256 orbit about the central axis of the drum 200 (also the axis ofrotation of the shaft or axle 201) upon rotation of the drum 200 aboutsaid central axis, each of the rollers 256 will be rotatedsimultaneously in the same direction about its axes, as illus trated inFIGURE 9.

The drive for accomplishing this is illustrated best in Each ofthese'rollers 280 is carried by a spacer rod 281 which also serves asspacing means for the Each end of the rod 281 is threaded and extendsoutwardly through an opening 282 (FIGURE 11) in the This spur gear 290 iried on a stub shaft 292 that has its axis parallel to the axis of themain drive shaft 201. This shaft 292 is carried by a bearing 293 on thestandard 203. The inner end of the shaft 292 has keyed thereto a spurgear 294 which meshes with a spur gear 295 that is fixed to a sleeve 296(FIGURE which is rotatably mounted on the shaft 201. The gear traincomprising the gears 290, 291, 294, and 295 is such that there will be adifferential action which will cause the sleeve 296 to advance androtate relative to the main drive shaft 201 whenever the shaft 201 isdriven. This will result in the rollers 256 being driven about theiraxes whenever the shaft 201 is rotated to revolve the drum 200. Thedrive for the rollers 256 continues through the sleeve 296 and through aplurality of double planetary pinion units 297 angularly spaced on theend plate 217. Each double pinion unit 297 is rotatably supported by apin 298 between the end plate 217 and a supporting disc 299 which isrotatably mounted on the sleeve 296. The sleeve 296 has teeth 296a onits inner end which engage with the inner section 300 of the planetarypinion unit. The outer section 301 of each planetary pinion unit engageswith the inner teeth of a ring gear 302. This ring gear 302 is carriedby a support 304 which is rotatably mounted on the sleeve 296 betweenthe member 299 and the gear 295. The teeth on the outer surface of thering gear 302 are in engagement with and drive all the spur gears 267keyed on the outer ends of the roller shafts 262.

As previously indicated, during driving of the shaft 201 to revolve thedrum 200, the sleeve 296will be advanced on the shaft, by thedifferential action of the gear train and this relative rotation of thesleeve 296 on the shaft 201 will drive the pinions 297 about their ownaxes as they revolve with the drum 200 and travel around the sleeve 296.Rotation of the pinion units 297 about their own axes produces rotationof the ring gear 302 about the axis of the shaft 201. Rotation of thering gear will produce rotation of the gears 267 carried by the'rollershafts of the rollers 256 and will produce rotation of these rollersabout their own axes. Thus, as the drum 200 is revolved, the rollers 256are rotated about their own axes.

As the drum 200 revolves about the axis of the shaft 201 and the rollers256 are driven about their own axes, centrifugal force will, aspreviously indicated, move the floating rollers 257 out into firmengagement with the cooperating pairs of rollers 256. Consequently, eachroller 257 will be driven by frictional contact with a pair ofcooperating rollers 256 and rotation of the roller 257 will be in adirection opposite to that of the direction of rotation of thecooperating rollers 256.

It will be apparent that with this form of centrifuge, the separatingaction will be similar to that of the first form described andillustrated in FIGURES 1-6. A quantity of liquid with entrained solidmatter will be introduced into the drum through the frusto-conicalbaffle 220 and theinlets 219 and'as the drum 200 is rotated, the'liquidis thrown against the periphery of the drum. The solid matteraccumulates on the outer peripheral wall 215 as the drum is revolved athigh speed. Liquid is prevented from flowing outwardly through theperipheral wall of the drum as the deformable resilient structures ofadjacently disposed contacting rollers 256 and 257 form a substantiallyliquid-impervious, continuous peripheral wall 215. Furthermore, thesealing against the substantial escape of liquid is also accomplished atthe ends of the rollers by their described cooperation with the endplates 216 and 217. Centrifugal force causes the solid matter toaccumulate on the inwardly presented surfaces of the cooperating rollers256 and 257, the cleaned liquid flowing to the outlets 226. The skimmer225 will serve to skim off the liquid and tend to prevent solids fromreaching the liquid outlets 226.

Removal of the separated solid matter that has ac- .cumulated on theinwardly facing surfaces of the rollers 256 and 257 is accomplished byrotating these rollers outwardly about their own axes as previouslyindicated.

rollers 256 and 257 is embedded in the resilient casing thereof therebyproviding adequate frictional contact to permit the solid mattercollected therebetween to be carried inwardly by the rollers against theoutwardly directed centrifugal forces to the converging surfaces of anoutwardly turning pair of rollers. The resilient coverings of therollers facilitate the extraction of the solid matter without permittingthe liquid to escape, the solid matter deforming the casings and beingembedded therein, leaving the adjacent roller surfaces in a contactingrelationship substantially impervious to the outward flow of the liquid.As the roller surfaces carrying the embedded solid matter are rotated toan outwardly facing position, the resilient coverings spring back totheir normally annular shape thereby releasing the solid matter, furtheraided by the centrifugal force created by the rotating drum. The pairsof inwardly turning rollers 256 and 257 always remain in contactingrelationship preventing the outflow of liquid or solid matter betweenthese rollers.

The moist solid matter deposited on the inner surface of the casing 206willbe scraped therefrom by the scraper unit 240 and will be moved tothe outlet 210.

The floating action of the rollers 257 will compensate automatically forany wear on the surfaces of the rollers 256 or 257. Also, this floatingaction provides a means for compensating for the diiferent'amounts ofsolids in various liquids separated by the machine. The rollers 257 willadjust themselves automatically in accordance with the build-up ofgreater or lesser amounts of solids on the cooperating rollers.Furthermore, this automatic adjustment maintains the liquid-imperviousnature of the peripheral roller wall. The ends of all these rollers arerenewable when necessary.

It is readily apparent from the preceding detailed description that acentrifuge constructed in accordance with both embodiments of thisinvention effectively extracts the solid matter from the fluid andconveniently removes the separated liquid and solid matter from thecentrifuge. This centrifuge greatly improves the performance ofcentrifugal separators utilized in industry to eliminate the solidmatter entrained in waste fluids such as that resulting from a coalwashing process as is generally required for the proper disposalthereof. Improved performance results from the separation of the solidmatter from the liquid in the natural sequence, that is, the centrifugalforce causes the solid matter to accumulate on the periphery of a rotarydrum displacing the liquid inwardly. The solid matter is thenconveniently extracted from the rotary drum through the peripheral wallwhich remains impervious to the flow of the liquid. The liquid which isthen relative free of the solid matter-and retained within the rotarydrum will easily flow out of the rotary drum and into a disposal system.Utilization of a plurality of rollers disposed in yieldable sealingcontacting relationship as the solids collecting, peripheral wall memberis extremely effective in extracting the solid matter from the rotarydrum without a concurrent leakage of liquid. Performance is furtherenhanced by the elimination of turbulence in the liquid at the inwardlyfacing wall surface that occurs with prior art separators whenmechanisms such as scrapers or helical screws are utilized to remove theseparated solid matter collected on the peripheral wall of the drumwhich will return some of the previously separated solid matter tosuspension. Turbulence is substantially eliminated in this device as therollers do not remove the solid matter adjacent the sepa- 1 5 rated bodyof liquid but remove it from the regions where the liquid is notpresent, thatis, the confined converging spaces between the outwardlyturning rollers. Into these converging spaces, the solid matter isthrown by centrifugal force and is carried by the adjacent outwardlyturning pairs of rollers so that it is gradually compacted and squeezedbetween the converging surfaces and is finally moved through anddischarged outwardly of the roller wall. Expansion of the yieldablesurfaces of the rollers after they move out of contact dislodges anysolid matter tending to adhere thereto. These confined spaces are, ineffect, substantially equivalent to the closed tubes used in laboratorytype centrifugal separators where the separating action is mostefficient but the spaces are provided in a commercial type separatorwhere the solids are removed continuously.

Another highly important advantage of a centrifuge constructed inaccordance with this invention is that the solids collecting, peripheralwall member is continuously self-cleaning during operation avoiding thenecessity of an intermittent cleaning operation, reduced effectivenessbetween cleaning operations or loss of efiiciency resulting fromoperation of partially clogged filters.

According to the provisions of the patent statutes, the principles ofthis invention have been explained and have been illustrated anddescribed in what is now considered to represent the best embodiment.However, it is to be understood that, within the scope of the appendedclaims, the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specificallyillustrated and described.

I claim:

1. In a centrifugal separator for extracting and separating solids frommixtures of solids and liquids of the type wherein there is provided:

a stationary housing;

a drum member mounted for rotation about its axis within said housingand for receiving a mixture of solids and liquids; said drum memberhaving substantially liquid impervious end walls, having a substantiallyliquid impervious peripheral wall which comprises an annular series of aplurality of contiguous rotary rollers journalled in and connecting bothof said end walls, and having a rotatable shaft positioned at thecentral axis of rotation of the drum;

an inlet means connected to said drum member to supply a mixture ofsolids and liquids to said drum member; I

outlet means connected to said drum for removing and discharging theseparated liquid from the interior of saiddrum member;

drive mechanism connected to said shaft and through it to said end wallsand said peripheral wall for rotating said drum member including saidshaft, said end walls and said peripheral wall;

means for rotating said rotary rollers each about its own axis;

wherein said-plurality of contiguous rotary rollers are journalled inand connect both of said end walls on axes substantially parallel withsaid central axis and each roller has a resilient deformable surface;

the improvements wherein:

said drum member forms a substantially unobstructed chamber mounted forrotation about its axis within said housing;

said end walls comprise a pair of essentially circular plate memberseach connected .to and parallel with but spaced from the other platemember and both secured to said shaft and with it mounted for rotationof said central axis;

said substantially liquid impervious peripheral wall of said drum membercomprises an annular series of said rotary rollers contiguous to eachother, extending completely around the periphery of said wall and thusforming the entire peripheral wall of said drum, the roller axes beingspaced angularly in a continuous endless path about the drum and thereis provided openings,

means for sealing the junctions between said rotary,

rollers and said circular plate members;

said drive mechanism connected to said shaft and through it to saidspaced parallel plate member comprising means for rotating at high speedsaid drum including said unobstructed chamber, sa-id shaft, said' spacedparallel plate members and said continuous annular impervious peripheralwall to apply centrifugal force to cause the entire mixture of solidsand liquids to be thrown by centrifugal force outwardly toward theinwardly facing surfaces of said annular series of the plurality ofcontiguous rotary rollers to said resilient deformable surfaces of thecontiguous.

rotary rollers of said substantially liquid impervious peripheral wallcollect thesolids which are forced outward by centrifugal force to theinner face of the wall and of said plurality of contiguous rotaryrollers and comprise means to engage the solids, to convey the solidsunder pressure through said continuous annular liquid impervious rotaryWall to forcibly release the solids from the rollers by the reflexaction,

of the deformable surfaces, and supplemented by centrifugal force todischarge the solids from the chamber, and each roller closelycontacting the two next adjacent rollers substantially throughout theirlength and thus forming said substantially cylindrical peripheral wallaround the circumference of said closed drum; and

there is provided means comprising an independently driven scraper forcontinuously removing the solids from the housing.

2 A centrifugal separator according to claim 1 in which said peripheralwall comprises groups of three rollers with two rollers of each groupbeing relatively radiallyfixed between said plate means during rotationof said drum and spaced apart angularly to provide a radial spacetherebetween and with a third roller of each group being mounted forradial outward movement between said plate means upon rotation thereof,to cover saidradial space i by contact with said first two rollers, thesaid converging space between each pair of rollers being provided bysaid 1 radially movable roller and an adjacent radially fixed,

roller.

3. A centrifugal separator according to claim 2 in which said means fordriving the rollers comprises means for positively driving the tworadially fixed rollers of each pair in the same direction, said radiallymovable roller of each group being driven by contact with the tworadially fixed rollers.

4. A centrifugal separator according to claim 2 in which a radiallyfixed stop roller is provided radially outward from said third rollerand substantially within the space between said first two rollers.

5. A centrifugal separator according to claim 4 in which each stoproller is carried by spacer rods connected to said plate means for axialspacing thereof.

6. A centrifugal according to claim 1 in which said.

drum has plates at each end between which said rollers are mounted andone of said plates is provided with inlet and is provided with a liquidinlet means comprising an exterior annular overlying said inletopenings, and the other of said plates is provided with outlet openingsand is provided with a skimmer lip adjacent said outlet openings at theinner surface of said plate.

7. A centrifuge according to claim 1 in which said scraper is positionedwithin said housing and is revoluble around said drum member and aroundsaid drum axis and the housing has a radial outlet for solids throughthe wall of said. housing.

bafile of frusto-conical form:

8. The centrifugal separator of claim 1 wherein said drive means forsaid rotary rollers is connected to alternate rollers to rotate saidalternate rollers positively in the same direction.

9. The centrifugal separator of claim 1 wherein said drive meansconnected to the rotary rollers includes a planet gear connected to eachof alternate rollers, and a rotary sun gear connected to said planetgears to rotate all of said planet gears in thesame direction and toeflect the rotation of all of said alternate rollers in the samedirection.

10.'The centrifugal separator of claim 1 wherein the rotary axes of saidannular series of rotary rollers lie in two concentric circles eachhaving a different radius, the first circle of rollers each having itsrotary axis floatable radially of the circle, and the second circle'ofrollers each having its rotary axis radially fixed and each beingintermediate and in surface contact with two of the rollers of saidfirst circle and each being positively driven and driving the'rollersofthe first circle through surface contact.

'11. The centrifugal separator of claim 1 wherein the rotary axes ofsaid annular series of rotary rollers lie in two concentric circles eachhaving a dilferent radius, the first circle of rollers having theirrotary axes floatable radially of the circle, and the second circle ofrollers each having its rotary axis radially fixed and each beingintermediate and in surface contact with two of the rollers of saidfirst circle and each being positively driven and driving the rollers ofthe first circle through surface contact, and there being a third circleof rollers which are smaller than the rollers of the second circle,lying intermediate the rollers of the second circle, and being spacedfrom the rollers of the second circle to each function as a back up stopfor a corresponding roller of said first circle of rollers as it ismoved outwardly by centrifugal force.

12. The centrifugal separator of claim 1 in which there is alsoprovided;

the independently driven scraper is a scraping structure surroundingsaid rotary peripheral wall and including a series of transverse bladeseach extending generally parallel to the axis of said rollers and aplurality of annular members interconnecting the ends of the blades and;i

in which the stationary housing surrounding said scraper structure isformed with a discharge; and

in which there-is provided means for independently driving said scraperstructure to move the solid material through the discharge.

13. A centrifuge comprising:

a chamber member rotatable about a central axis, having end walls, andhaving a substantially liquid impervious axially parallel annular wallformed by a plurality of successively contiguous resiliently deformablerollers,'every other of said rollers lying spaced from each other in anouter circle and the balance of said rollers lying in an inner circleconcentric with the outer circle in a manner to close the spaces betweensaid outer rollers; said rollers forming the impervious annular wallenclosing a substantially unobstructed space for radially containing amixture of solids and liquid against the centrifugal force due to therotation of said chamber member;

- means for sealing the ends of said rollers against said end walls;

means connected to said chamber member for rotating said chamber member;

means connected to" each of said outer rollers for rotating each of saidouter rollers on its axis, each of said inner rollers being rotated onits axis by contact with an outer roller;

a housing surrounding said chamber member; andmeans comprising a scraperfor removing the solids from the housing.

14. A centrifuge according to claim 13 wherein said rollers of the innercircle are floatingly mounted for radial movement outwardly from saidaxis inoutward radial movement of said inner rollers, each said stoproller being mounted radially outward of an inner roller andsubstantially within the space between two successive outer rollers.

17. In a centrifugal separator for extracting and separating solids frommixtures of solids and liquids of the type wherein there is provided:

a stationary housing;

a closed drum member forming a chamber mounted for rotation about itsaxis. within said housing and for receiving a mixture of solids andliquids: said drum member having substantially liquid impervious endWalls formed by plate members each connected to and parallel with butspaced from the other plate member; having a substantially liquidimpervious peripheral wall which comprises an annular series of aplurality of rotary rollers contiguous to each other, each closelycontacting the two next adjacent rollers substantially throughout theirlength extending completely around the periphery of said wall and thusforming said entire substantially cylindrical peripheral wall around thecircumference of said closed drum, the roller axes being spacedangularly in a continuous endless path about the drum, the rollers beingjournalled in and connecting both of said end walls and having inwardlyturning convergence between each of the alternate pairs of rollers, andeach roller having a resilient deformable surface; and having arotatable shaft positioned at the central axis of rotation of the drumand having both the plate members secured thereto and with them mountedfor rotation about said central axes;

an inlet means connected to said drum member to supply a mixture ofsolids and liquids to said drum member;

liquid outlet means connected to said drum for removing and dischargingthe separated liquid from the interior of said drum member;

drive mechanism connected to said shaft and through it to said end wallsand said peripheral wall for rotating said drum member including saidshaft, said end walls and said peripheral wall; and

means for rotating said rotary rollers each about its own axis;

the improvements wherein:

said chamber is substantially unobstructed;

there is provided means for sealing thejunctions between said rotaryrollers and said plate members;

said drive mechanism comprises means for rotating said drum at highspeed to apply centrifugal force to cause the entire mixture of solidsand liquids to be thrown by centrifugal force outwardly toward theinwardly facing surfaces of said annular series of the plurality ofcontiguous rotary rollers to deliver all of said solids to impinge uponsaid peripheral wall formed by said rollers and into said convergingspaces;

said means for rotating said rotary rollers comprises drive meansconnected to at least every other roller for rotating all of said rotaryrollers each about its own axis;

said resilient deformable surfaces collect the solids which are forcedoutward by centrifugal force to the inner face of and into theconverging spaces of said plurality of contiguous rotary rollers andcomprise means to convey the solids under pressure through 19 saidcontinuous annular liquid impervious rotary wall, and, supplemented bycentrifugal force, to discharge the solids from the chamber into thespace between the housing and the rotating drum member; and I there isprovided means comprising an independently driven scraper forcontinuously removing the solids from the housing.

18. In a centrifugal separator for extracting and separating solids frommixtures of solidsand liquids of the type wherein there is provided:

a stationary housing;

a drum member mounted for rotation about its axis within said housingforming a substantially 'unobstructed chamber for receiving a mixture ofsolids and liquids, said drum member having substantially liquidimpervious end wa1ls;'having a substantially liquid imperviousperipheral wall whichcomprises an annular series of a plurality ofcontiguous resiliently deformable rotary rollers journalled in andconnecting both of said end walls'on axes parallel with each other;

an inlet means connected to the drum member to supply a mixture ofsolids and liquids tofsaid chamber;

outletmeans connected to said drum for removing and discharging theseparated liquid from the interior of said chamber;

drive mechanism connected'to said shaft and through it to said end wallsand said peripheral wall for rotating said drum member including saidchamber, said shaft, said end walls and said peripheral wall; means forrotating said rotary rollers each about its own axis; the improvementswherein:

said drive mechanism is connected to said'spaced parallel plate membersand comprises means for rotating at high speed said drum including saidunobstructed chamber, said spaced parallel plate members and saidcontinuous annular liquid impervious peripheral wall to applycentrifugal force to cause the entire mixture of incoming solids andliquids to be thrown radially by centrifugal force directly outwardlythrough said unobstructed space toward the inwardly facing surfaces ofsaid annular series of the plurality of contiguous rotary rollers todeliver all of said solids to impinge upon and enter into the convergingsurfaces. of the rotary rollers and said peripheral wall formed by saidrollers;

sealing means are positioned at the junctions'bet'ween said rotaryrollers and said circular plate members;

said resilient deformable surfaces of the contiguous rotary rollers ofsaid substantially liquid impervious peripheral wall collect the solidswhich are thrown directly outward by centrifugal force to the inner faceof the Wall and of said plurality of contiguous rotary rollers andcomprise means to engage the solids, to convey the solids under pressurethrough said continuous annular liquid impervious rotary wall toforcibly release the solids from the rollers by the reflex action of thedeformable surfaces, and supplemented by centrifugal force to dischargethe solids from the chamber, and each roller closely contacting the twonext adjacent rollers substantially throughout their length and thusforming the closed drum around the circumference of said peripheralwall;

said means for rotating said rotary rollers comprises gears connected toalternate rotary rollers'for rotating said alternate rotary rollers eachabout its own axis and all in the same direction ofrotation and rotatingthe. intervening rollers through the surface contact of said drivenalternate rollers with said intervening. rollers thus rotating saidintervening rollers in the oppositedirection about their own axes forconveying'the solids between the'rollers and from exterior thereof intothe space between the peripheral;

wall and the casing; the outlet means connectedto said chamber is aidedby centrifugal force to discharge the separated liquid from the chamberat points within the circumference of the peripheral wall but closelyadjacentthereto; and there is provided means for continuously removingthe solids from the housing. i

19. In a centrifugal separator for extracting and separatt ing solidsfrom mixtures of solids and liquids of the type wherein there isprovided:

a stationary housing;

impervious peripheral wall which comprises an annular series of aplurality of contiguous resiliently deformable rotary rollers journalledin and connecting both of said end walls on axes parallel with eachother, and having a rotatable shaft positioned at the central axis' ofrotation of the drum formed with an axial bore and having an openingfrom the radial bore into said unobstructed chamber;

an inlet means connectedtto the bore of said rotatable shaft to supply amixtureof solids and liquids to said L bore and to said chamber; outletmeans connected to said drum for removing and discharging the separatedliquid from the interior of] said chamber; drive mechanism connected tosaid shaft and through it to said end walls and said peripheral wall forrotat- I ing said drum member including said chamber, said shaft, saidend walls, and said peripheral Wall;

means for rotating said rotary rollers each about its own axis;

the improvementswherein:

said annular series of said rotary rollers are contiguous to each other,extend completely around the periphery, of said wall and thus form theentire peripheral wall of said drum, form converging surfaces, theroller axes being spaced angularly in a continuous endless path aboutthe drum, and there'is provided means for sealing the junctions betweensaid rotary rollers and said circular plate members;

said drive mechanism is connected to said axle and through it to saidspaced parallel plate member and comprises means for rotating at highspeed said drum including said unobstructed chamber, said shaft, said,

spaced parallel plate members and said continuous annular liquidimpervious peripheral wall to apply centrifugal force to causethe'entire mixture of in-,

coming solids and liquids to be thrown radially by centrifugal forcedirectly outwardly through said un-:

said means for rotating said rotary rollers comprises drlve meansconnected to at least every other roller for rotating all of said rotaryrollers each about its,

own axis;

said resilient deformable surfaces of the contiguous rotary rollers ofsaid substantially liquid impervious peripheral wall collect the solidswhich are thrown directly outward by centrifugal force to the inner faceof the wall and of said plurality of contiguous rotary rollers andcomprises means to engage the solids, to

convey the solids under pressure through said continuous annular liquidimpervious rotary wall to forcibly release the solids from the rollersby the reflex action of the deformable surfaces, and supplemented bycentrifugal force to discharge the solids from the chamber, and eachroller closely contacting the two next adjacent rollers substantiallythroughout their length and thus forming the closed drum around thecircumference of said peripheral wall;

the outlet means connected to said chamber is aided by centrifugal forceto discharge the separated liquid from the chamber at points within thecircumference of the peripheral wall but closely adjacent thereto; and

there is provided means for continuously removing the solids from thehousing.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 994,631 6/ 191-1Berrigan 100-121 X 1,187,5-85 6/ 1916 Wendell 210-370 1,321,353 11/1919Bacon 233-20 1,321,354 11/1919 Bacon 2-33-20 2,136,540 11/1938 Brock233-32 X Jacoby 233-20 Link' 233-4 X Strezynski 233-4 Komline 233-46 XDenman 233-4 Peck 210-370 Ketchum et a1 68-22 X Brown et al 68-22 XReferences Cited by the Applicant UNITED STATES PATENTS Searle. Munro.

FOREIGN PATENTS Germany.

M. CARY NELSON, Primary Examiner. 2 ROBERT F. BURNETT, Examiner.

H. KLINKSIEK, Assistant Examiner.

1. IN A CENTRIFUGAL SEPARATOR FOR EXTRACTING AND SEPARATING SOLIDS FROMMIXTURES OF SOLIDS AND LIQUIDS OF THE TYPE WHEREIN THERE IS PROVIDED: ASTATIONARY HOUSING; A DRUM MEMBER MOUNTED FOR ROTATION ABOUT ITS AXISWITHIN SAID HOUSING AND FOR RECEIVING A MIXTURE OF SOLIDS AND LIQUIDS;SAID DRUM MEMBER HAVING SUBSTANTIALLY LIQUID IMPERVIOUS END WALLS,HAVING A SUBSTANTIALLY LIQUID IMPERVIOUS PERIPHERAL WALL WHICH COMPRISESAN ANNULAR SERIES OF A PLURALITY OF CONTIGUOUS ROTARY ROLLERS JOURNALLEDIN AND CONNECTING BOTH OF SAID END WALLS, AND HAVING A ROTATABLE SHAFTPOSITIONED AT THE CENTRAL AXIS OF ROTATION OF THE DRUM; AN INLET MEANSCONNECTED TO SAID DRUM MEMBER TO SUPPLY A MIXTURE OF SOLIDS AND LIQUIDSTO SAID DRUM MEMBER; OUTLET MEANS CONNECTED TO SAID DRUM FOR REMOVINGAND DISCHARGING THE SEPARATED LIQUID FROM THE INTERIOR OF SAID DRUMMEMBER; DRIVE MECHANISM CONNECTED TO SAID SHAFT AND THROUGH IT TO SAIDEND WALLS AND SAID PERIPHERAL WALL FOR ROTATING SAID DRUM MEMBERINCLUDING SAID SHAFT, SAID END WALLS AND SAID PERIPHERAL WALL; MEANS FORROTATING SAID ROTARY ROLLERS EACH ABOUT ITS OWN AXIS; WHEREIN SAIDPLURALITY OF CONTIGUOUS ROTARY ROLLLERS ARE JOURNALLED IN AND CONNECTBOTH OF SAID END WALLS ON AXES SUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL WITH SAID CENTRALAXIS AND EACH ROLLER HAS A RESILIENT DEFORMABLE SURFACE; THEIMPROVEMENTS WHEREIN: